Hermione's New Pet
by Autumn Felicity Summers
Summary: Response to WIKTT Adopt a Snape Challenge. Hermione adopts Snape in his Animagus form, while she takes on the job of searching for him as he is deemed lost.
1. Prologue

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**_ HERMIONE'S NEW PET_**

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**__**

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By- Autumn Felicity Summers

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** PROLOGUE**

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Animagi, thought Severus Snape, is one of the most useful things.

The reason for the comment was simple. He was able to follow Lucius Malfoy without him even knowing a thing that he was being tracked.

Well, so long that he remained ignorant, well enough!

--

Dumbledore would certainly find this interesting, thought Severus to himself as he – bound – back to the Leaky Cauldron, where he had temporarily taken up at room.

He knew that Voldemort was aware of the fact that it was he who was there to spy on him and the Death-Eaters, but he simply couldn't figure out how – nor anyone else for that matter.

Well, they wouldn't ever know! He thought with a malicious glee. He would have is revenge!

--

Once back in his room via the window, Severus Snape, still in his Animagus form, 'leapt' around a little inspecting for any curse or sign of discovery. No, nothing was wrong. It was safe to transform back into what he was.

Oh Merlin!

Oh Merlin! Oh Merlin! Oh Merlin!

Why did the ground still seem so close to him?

Why did he feel so light and lithe?

Why did he still have the strange urge to nibble on nuts?

Oh Merlin! This didn't mean any good. No good at all.

--

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"A perfect solution, Hermione!" said Percy Weasley appreciatively.

"Well, I did have that thought in mind for some time – and of course, it was with the help of a load of books," said Hermione, trying to sound modest and failing – not as miserably as she would have a few years ago, though.

"Well, with this new spell, it would be a lot easier to track unregistered Animagus. No more unregistered Animagi! Well, that is quite good."

"Okay, so explain to me again how this thing works," asked Ron, who had hitherto been a mute audience.

"It's very simple, Ron. You remember we learnt modifications of properties of Freezing Spell?"

"No. and I don't want to listen to a lecture," said Ron to an affronted Hermione. "Just in plain English – what does it do?"

Eager to explain something, Hermione said, "It will transform all unregistered Animaguses to their Animagi forms and freeze them so. Unless they report to the Animagi Department Head-Office, they won't be able to transform back."

"Quite clever. But how did you cast a spell on the whole country?"

"I have not," said Hermione, "I merely cast it over Diagon Alley and Leaky Cauldron. There have been quite a few robberies in the Diagon Alley lately and if the robbers are doing it in their Animagus form, well, they are now trapped."

"How will they know what to do?"

"Oh, they will know. As soon as they transform, a notice concerning this will appear in front of them."

--

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"_The fact that you are reading this notice clearly means that you are an unregistered Animagus. You will be return to your human form only if you report to the Head Office, Animagi Department, Ministry of Magic. – Hermione Granger."_

Hermione Granger! And he had thought that he had gotten rid of that little chit. Whatever was she doing? Report to the Head Office? And reveal his secret? And be laughed at? Be useless to the Order? That little chit!

At that moment, he hated Hermione Granger with an intensity he hadn't hated even James Potter.

--

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	2. Chapter 1

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: I am not quite sure about the genre of this story. What is it? Mystery? Humour? Suspense? What? Please, tell me!**

**Review Responses:**

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_**HERMIONE'S NEW PET**_

**CHAPTER** **1**

Hermione returned to her apartment quite early that evening. She had some more research to do on the new spell to make it effective over a larger area.

However, just as she took off her robes, a bright phoenix feather appeared in front of her.

_An emergency Order meeting..._

"Now that we are all here," said Dumbledore, looking around the gathering, "there is something critical I would like to bring to your notice."

"Er... professor," said Hermione, looking pointedly at the empty chair next to Remus'.

"Yes, Miss Granger," said Dumbledore, his voice quite grave, "that is just what I was referring to."

Hermione took in a sharp breath. _Snape_ was missing? And Dumbledore thought it was critical.

It seemed that many of the people had not noticed Snape's absence. That was probably because he usually didn't attend all the Order meetings. But Hermione had observed that he was there in all the emergency ones.

"What's wrong with Snape, then?" asked Remus. Hermione could trace signs of worry in his voice.

"Severus, I am afraid, is missing – since his last spying mission."

"_WHAT?"_

Hermione turned towards Harry, as did the majority present. Harry's eyes were livid with rage.

"_That disgusting traitor!"_

"Harry," Hermione began, but Dumbledore cut her off.

"Harry, if Snape is missing it does not necessarily mean that he has turned into a traitor."

"Yes, for all we know, he might have been found out," remarked Luna, in a very off-handed manner.

All eyes turned to her – all eyes, bright with panic. However, she seemed strangely oblivious of all the attention.

"And I fear," said Dumbledore, getting all attention back to himself, "that is more plausible. Last time he reported that the Dark Lord was rather restless about discovering how he spied."

"But, sir," said Hermione, "won't you know the way he spied? I mean you could find out why he isn't back and..._well_?"

Dumbledore sighed and shook his head. "I am afraid that secret was in Severus' heart alone, my dear."

There was a tension-filled uneasy silence following this revelation.

"So what now?" asked Ron, who didn't seem to be doing much thinking about the whole thing. Ron, as he had grown-up, had turned out more of the "action" type than the "think-and-act" one.

"Yes, the most important question that, Mr. Weasley. Since my presence is required more in Hogwarts and for its protection, I am afraid I cannot actively participate in this. Hence, I have chalked out a plan.

"Miss Granger, you will find out the last whereabouts of Severus and see how far you can follow that up. Remus, Bill, you two will shadow the Malfoys. If Severus is captured, then they will surely know something about it. From what I know, Draco Malfoy has quite gone up in the Death-Eater ranks."

There was a terse silence.

"But what if he is a traitor?" persisted Harry.

"I have considered that option, too, Harry," said Dumbledore. "For that, I would ask you and Mr. Weasley along with all of you others to keep a sharp look out for him. Severus cannot tell anybody about the Headquarters as I am the Secret-Keeper. However, he can reveal the names of the Order members, and of those who have turned from Darkness to help us. Hence, I would ask you all to keep a sharp lookout for yourselves. Here is a list of families who particularly need protection. There are some of your names against it. You are responsible for that particular family. Alastor will be in-charge. Alastor?"

Moody, still the same as ever with his magical eye and wooden leg, took the list.

"Well, I wish you luck in your endeavours."

Hermione glanced through her application for leave and then beckoned her eagle owl (a present from Harry on her eighteenth birthday).

_Well, _she thought, _at least that is settled. Percy will see to it that I never ever allowed in the office if he finds out that I have dragon-pox. _

Hermione was one of the 'Ministry spies' for the Order. Due to her high academic achievements, the new Minister for Magic, Susan Bones, had given her an important place in the Department of Mysteries. Owing to the managerial part of her job, she was in constant contact with Percy, Susan Bones' personal assistant. Hence, she could, while making "small talk" weasel out some bits of information from him. Ministry was keeping some secrets of its own, but Hermione was not involved in a major part of it. But all that 'talkativeness' did pay off.

Nobody was suspicious if she chatted like there was no end to it. Nobody doubted _why_ she should question so much. All they said was, "_Oh_, _that's_ _Hermione_ _Granger_."

Hmmm... and Professor Snape had called her an 'incessant chatter-box' during her seventh-year.

_If only he could see me now!_ She thought, a bit acerbically. However, she soon realized what she was in for and _wished_ that he could she her then. At least, then there won't be all these horrible suspicions against him.

She had not, for even a moment, believed that Snape was a traitor. She won't give reasons for her belief, for she had none. She just _knew._

She knew how important he was for the Order. He was not only the best spy, but also a great asset because he was a Potions Master – the best in whole of Europe. She had spent some part of her seventh-year as an apprentice under him. Earlier, she had meant to follow up that path and become a Potions Mistress. Once, she had even joked that her skill would rival his own some day. Snape, with a small quirk of his lips, had said he would wait for that day.

But the letter from the Ministry asking her to join the Department of Mysteries was just too tempting. _By_ _Merlin_, it was the _Department_ _of_ _Mysteries_! Ever since the disastrous visit to it in her fifth-year, she had wanted to go there. She wondered about the Veil. She had talked to Luna about it – well, _tried_ to talk, at least, to see what she could make of it. Luna had been too vague about it all.

She had presently taken up the research which Luna's mother, Lynn Lovegood, had left unfinished. It was a very interesting piece of work concerning life after death – the world beyond.

Her last farewell from the Potions Master had been very cold. He had not taken well her sudden change of decision. She, too, felt sort of guilty at leaving him. But the salary, the opportunities, the mysteries appealed to her more than potion-brewing, potion-creating, potion-analyzing, etc. She admitted that it had been a very difficult decision to leave her apprenticeship. She had cried the night before she was to leave it. But her decision was made. And she had no regrets about it.

Well, none except that she couldn't keep up to her word of rivalling Severus Snape's status of the best Potions Master in Europe some day. Perhaps, she regretted leaving him, too. She had grown accustomed to the dungeons, the lab, the experiments, their short but enlightening discussions and the occasional cup of tea in his chambers. Though her loyalties would always lie with red and gold, her senses found the sophistication and serenity of silver and green very lovely, too – though Snape had scowled fiercely at her when she had used the term "_lovely_".

They had never had a proper conversation – or any conversation since then. Now Hermione was twenty and already quite a success at her job.

And such had been the turn of fate that most of her time would be spent concerning Potions Master, once again.

She changed into her pyjamas and lay down on the bed. But sleep was not to come to her that night. She turned to her side and lay staring out of the window at the crescent moon, wondering what had become of the Potions Master.

The Potions Master, meanwhile, was staring at the same crescent moon. The only difference was that he wasn't staring at it in his human form; hence it seemed larger and further to him than it normally would.

He was cold. He was thirsty. He was hungry. He was a squirrel.

_Well_, _what_ _could_ _be_ _worse_ _than_ _that?_

As he heard footsteps coming towards this room, he thought that he was about to discover what could be worse than _that_.

"Yes, I am _positive_ that he took this room, Mr. Malfoy."

That was Giuseppe – the new care-taker, supposedly, of Italian and British parentage. Though, if Severus was to give _his_ opinion, he would say that he was fully British. He had the most perfect accent.

Suddenly, the door of his room burst open and Severus sprinted to the bureau and hid himself underneath.

It was Lucius Malfoy. He whipped out his wand and performed some charm.

"And you say that he has not left this room since yesterday?" asked Malfoy, clearly annoyed that his charms showed the result to be negative.

"No. I had this room spelled so as not to let any human-being leave this room as soon as I heard from Larry that a dark man had occupied this room. Then I asked Tom and he told me that it was Severus Snape from Hogwarts all right. He usually comes to stay here for the weekend so they couldn't suspect anything."

Lucius' scowl deepened. He had had high hopes of capturing the Potions Master. He knew that with Giuseppe's help he would be able to. But it seemed as if the cards had been turned against him.

"Is it not possible that he might not have been here when you were putting the spell on this place?"

"No. I checked to see if the man was inside. He had his back to me, but he was at that desk all right. He was wearing midnight black robes and had the blackest greasy hair. I was sure it had to be him."

"But you never saw his _face_, did you?"

"Well, even if it wasn't Severus Snape, which is only one in a thousand million chance, well, whoever it was should be here, shouldn't he?"

"He _should_, yes, but the fact remains, Giuseppe, he _isn't_."

"I _know_, and it is the strangest thing in the world. There seems no way that he could have gone out. And yet no one is here, _no_ _one_ _at_ _all_!"

After puzzling over the mystery for some more minutes, Giuseppe and Lucius Malfoy, left the room.

_Aren't they the greatest fools?_

_So are you. You should have known that they were smarter than that. _

_But I am free – well, at least from being caught by Death-Eaters._

_And that means so much considering that you have no magical powers, you cannot communicate with anyone and unless you want to risk exposure, you are doomed to remain here – as a squirrel, remember – for the windows and doors were closed by that bloody care-taker as soon as he felt that no human is here. It is beyond you to open them. You are nothing but an insignificant little squirrel. _

_Granger, Merlin save you when I am back._

If_ you are back._

_I am being an idiot!_

And with that Severus Snape, the Squirrel stopped his quarrel with self and decided to do something about the problem he was currently facing. But what, he knew not.

Yawning (he didn't know if squirrels truly yawned, but he was doing something to its equivalent), he crept out from under the bureau and leapt onto the bed. Curling, he decided that whether human or rodent, at least he could sleep.

Putting up the last of her glamour charms, Hermione went out.

It didn't take her long to decide from where she should start.

_Search first the public places. _

The teeny-weeny problem was Snape was not the kind to visit public places. Even if he did, it wasn't as if many people would notice _him _(no offence meant, of course, but facts were facts). Plus, he had gotten lost over the weekend. Okay, so _where_ did Snape go over the weekend?

When she had been his apprentice, Snape had not gone anywhere except to the Snape Manor once to visit his mother. And that was during Christmas. Well, nope, no clue there. He had mentioned that it was a mere formality. It was no secret that there was little love lost between Severus Snape and his mother. So Snape had no reason to go to Snape Manor.

She wondered where the last meeting of Death-Eaters had been held. All Dumbledore knew was that it was a different placing after every two or three times. However, he had also mentioned that they had changed the place last time. So it was plausible that this time was the same as the last.

But he had left Hogwarts for the weekend, too.

_That_ was what the problem was. He had felt the Dark Mark burn when he was on the weekend holiday. All he had done was owl Dumbledore a note with a single line "_He_ _has_ _summoned_ _them_ _again_".

_Okay_, _Hermione_, _think –_ _where_ _would_ _Snape_ _go_ _for_ _the_ _weekend_?

_Thinking_. That was all she had been doing since morning. Thinking and more thinking and still more thinking – but it was all absolutely fruitless.

Weary, even though she had done nothing more than futile thinking, Hermione decided to go down to the Leaky Cauldron for a drink. She needed to get away from all this for a while. Though there were gossipers in the Leaky Cauldron, they usually talked about non-existence things (not that they would admit _that_). So there was absolutely no chance of her getting even a glimpse of anything about what she was thinking there. An hour of peace was all she wanted.

And yet, she was _not_ to have it. As she waited for Tom to get her the drink, her eyes fell on the thick ledger kept on the side. She wasn't even consciously aware that she was going through it. And so, it was quite a shock for her when she saw the name "_Severus_ _Snape_" there.

"Tom," she asked the bar-tender as he handed her the cocktail, "is Professor Snape still here?"

"No. His stay here was pre-paid, you see. He was to leave today. But he hasn't returned from wherever he has gone to. His bags are still in his room. I am not sure what to do. Professor Snape has been coming here regularly since last year, you see. So it would be rude to send back his bags to Hogwarts when he probably means to stay more. But the thing is I already have that room pre-booked for the week for some Giovanni chap. I am really in a fix about this thing."

Snape had been spending his weekends in the Leaky Cauldron for a year and nobody had had the slightest idea. If _that_ wasn't weird, Hermione didn't know what was.

She put the Concealment Charm on herself and went towards Room 13. Snape was indeed far, far more mysterious than was good for his health. However, she was in a better mood now that she was on some trail.

Before she went in, she removed the Concealment Charm. If Professor Snape was there, by any remote chance, she did not want to appear there all of a sudden and killing him of heart-attack. It would make all her work useless. Though, if he had been spying and berating people for all these years, then he had to have a tough heart.

The first thing she saw, as she entered the room was a – _squirrel_?!? A _white_ squirrel at that! Were there even supposed to be squirrels that had such _silky_ _white_ _fur_?

Whoever did that lovely thing sleeping on the bed belong to? _Professor_ _Snape_?

"_How_ _cute_!"

It was involuntarily said. But the idea of Professor Snape owing such an adorable animal did seem so _cute_.

Well, that was until _he_ heard it. How he would react then was something she didn't want to think about. At least it won't be _cutely_.

However, she couldn't stop herself from giggling. "Don't worry, Professor, your deepest, darkest secret is safe with me."

Her giggle woke up the creature on the bed. It – _yawned_, did it? And then it fixed its lovely large liquid black eyes on Hermione – and blinked.

**Okay, feedback time!**


	3. Chapter 2

_**HERMIONE'S NEW PET**_

: Autumn Felicity Summers

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**Review Responses:-**

**KarenDetroit**: I am glad you do! And thanks for reviewing my other fic, too.

**Slytherin** **Queen**: Well, it certainly has made me a bit more sure about my ability for writing humour. Though I am still in doubt about that. I can get very tragic in writing at times.

**Vaughn**: I was thinking along the same lines. All those cats, crows and ravens were getting a bit boring. However, there is more to the squirrel than meets the eye. After all, I couldn't let dear Severus be just any squirrel! Read on to find out! Though it might come in a bit later chapters.

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**CHAPTER 2**

**HERMIONE, THE DEATH-EATER**

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_At least I have the freedom to sleep..._ thought Severus lazily as he yawned (or whatever).

Though he was a squirrel, his sixth sense was as powerful as ever.

Presently, it was telling him that he was not alone here.

The intruder had come near the bed. A lovely blonde woman?

And she dared to call him _cute_!

His decision was made. This woman was dying before Hermione Granger.

"Professor Snape?"

_How does that odious woman know that I am supposed to be here?_

If looks could kill... _if only... than you would have died so many deaths, you silly chit, that all the Gods in the Universe wouldn't have been able to do anything about it. And yes, it would involve a lot of pain. A lot and a lot of pain. So much pain that you would beg for the Cruciatus._

Hermione Granger had removed the glamour charms she had put up earlier for secrecy.

-

There was absolutely no sign of him and yet, it certainly looked as if he was living here. Where was he?

After an hour of thorough search – manually and magically – Hermione sat down on his bed. The squirrel, she noticed, was stationary as ever. She looked at it. The squirrel stared back.

_There is certainly something very wrong here._

Suddenly, Hermione had an image of a tabby cat sitting on the desk in the Transfiguration class.

_So, little squirrel, who are you?_

Her suspicions were confirmed when the squirrel sunk its teeth in her hand as she made to pet it.

Yelping ungraciously, Hermione jumped to her feet, pulling out her wand with the other hand.

"_Animagus Rectify!"_

-

_The annoying chit! _He thought angrily as he leaped out of the way of the orange flash of light.

He crept under the bureau and kept still.

He could see that she was surprised.

"Oh Merlin, it _wasn't_ an Animagus! I have killed that little squirrel!" he heard her say in anguish.

Smirking to himself, he moved out slightly to see her pacing the room. _Was she really so freaking distressed at killing a squirrel?_

"And I cannot find Professor Snape, even! Oh Merlin!"

_No, she is distressed because she can't find me._

What was he to make of it? The little chit had clearly shown that she didn't care about him two years ago when she had left his apprenticeship. Then what bothered her now? Maybe it was just the feeling of defeat. The girl didn't like being anything less than perfect. Perhaps that was why she was so unhappily ranting all the time. Okay, so she didn't 'rant' all the time, but he found her talkativeness annoying, anyway.

The next surprise was when the girl finally gave up and decided to go out. He was following her closely, determined to follow the girl to her place. Then he could find some way of changing back to himself without utter humiliation.

It seemed that Giuseppe's spell was functioning quite well. The girl couldn't open the door and no matter what she tried, she failed. It was only for so long that one could bear Hermione Granger's company. And he felt as if he was dying some time soon with her talking to herself. Thinking aloud, in other words. It irritated him to no end.

And then, the footsteps. His animalistic senses could decipher the familiar clicking of Lucius Malfoy's boots. Suddenly, he found that he did not wish Miss Granger a horrible death, after all.

Miss Granger had not heard it, it seemed. She was pacing the room herself, too lost in her thoughts.

She jumped in surprise and almost stepped back on him as the door was flung open.

"Professor..." she trailed off. Obviously, she had thought that it was him who would fling open the door in that loud manner. _Stupid_ _chit_! Didn't she know that he had more manners than _that_?

"Miss Granger," the blonde man stared coldly at her.

Severus hurried to get out of sight.

"Mr. Malfoy."

"What are you doing here?" he demanded.

"That will be none of your business," the girl spat out at him.

"Impertinent Mudblood!" he thundered, pulling out his wand.

From his vantage point, Severus could see that Giuseppe was just out of Hermione's sight. He would attack her for sure.

_We have no magical powers so we can easily get killed. _

_But so can the little chit._

_We do not bother about little chits._

_No, not about any little chit, but about Hermione Granger._

_No, we do not._

_Maybe not, but there is no other person who can rectify our critical situation. We have got to save the chit._

Satisfied that he wasn't doing it for _her_, Severus crept behind Giuseppe and as he was pulling out his wand, sunk his sharp incisors deep into the man's calf.

_That's as dirty as dirty could be._

Yelping in pain, Giuseppe dropped his wand. Lucius Malfoy turned around.

Severus was grateful that the girl took this opportunity to attack them both.

But the glory wasn't going to last. A few people had seen the girl attack two men. They recognized the girl as they were Colin Creevey, his brother Dennis and a few other people who knew Hermione Granger by sight.

Not caring, she ran out of the room, down the steps and just before she put a Concealment Charm on herself, Severus attached himself to her bag. It was going to be an uncomfortable journey. But he hoped for compensation.

-

Once she had securely warded her room, Hermione removed the Concealment Charm, threw her bag on a chair and lay down on the bed.

It had been one hell of an adventure – very fruitless, too.

She had found out the last whereabouts of Snape. It seemed as if he was still there. Heck, she had even found out about his pet – and killed it. And she had attacked Lucius Malfoy and whoever that was with him in front of enough witnesses.

Oh! She was in _so_ much trouble, especially if Snape found out about his familiar.

"I am sorry, Professor," she said softly, massaging her head which had started to throb with an oncoming headache.

She kicked off her shoes and settled comfortably on the sofa. She did not have the heart to walk to the bed. There were anti-apparating wards all over the house, of course. She couldn't have Death-Eaters apparating in at their convenience or hers, for all that mattered.

Sighing, she closed her eyes and was soon deep into the arms of Morpheus.

Hermione was rudely woken up from her sleep by someone banging on the door. Bleary-eyed, she stumbled out of the sofa, hitting her leg against the table.

Muttering that she would curse whoever was at the door, she got up and went to it.

"Harry?"

"Hermione! Are you all right?"

"I was until you came," she said sulkily.

"Merlin, Hermione, I was so worried about you! Evelyn said that Lucius Malfoy attacked you and the Death-Eaters..."

"Harry, stop! What are you talking about?" asked Hermione, rubbing her eyes. "It was I who attacked Malfoy. Not the other way round."

"But why?"

"Well, he would have attacked me if I hadn't. Come on, Harry! You sure know that!"

Harry shook his head and sat down. "This is bad. We didn't find Lucius Malfoy there. Just some person called Giuseppe who says you are a Death-Eater who attacked him. He also said that Lucius Malfoy and other Death-Eaters were there. I know, of course, that you cannot be a Death-Eater. That's simply bizarre! But I thought that Lucius Malfoy and others might have attacked you or something..."

Hermione frowned. "That's just ridiculous! Harry, who is Evelyn?"

"She was there, along with Colin and Dennis, who are presently disoriented. Seems like a Memory Charm or something."

"This is plain ridiculous. I ought to go to the Ministry to clear this up," said Hermione, getting up.

"Didn't you send in a letter yesterday, saying you had dragon-pox?"

Hermione sat down, her head in her hands. "I am in so much trouble!!!"

Harry didn't say anything; he was staring at her, to be more precise, at her left forearm. Her sleeve had pushed up revealing the said forearm when she had brought up her hands to her head. Hermione followed Harry's gaze and gasped.

"This... this is _impossible_!"

Harry looked at her warily and got up, his hand moving towards his wand pocket.

"Harry, believe me, I don't... Harry, are you mad?"

"I didn't expect this of you, Hermione," said Harry, pointing his wand at her.

-

-

_And here I am thinking I could get pleasurable sleep at least in my Animagus form. Whoever is trying to break the bloody door is dying a more painful death than Miss Granger._

Severus stopped mid-tirade as he had to jump out of the way when Miss Granger stumbled out of the temporary bed.

He wasn't surprised to see that the-Boy-Who-Lived-Much-To-My-Displeasure barge in. These Gryffindors were also as slapdash as possible.

As the conversation proceeded, though, his grumpiness left him. He went near enough Miss Granger's feet (better her than Potter!) as he could without getting trampled on. They were so engrossed in their conversation that they didn't notice him.

He jumped on the sofa to observe the Dark Mark more closely. Yes, he had heard about this in the last meeting. Poor girl, she was half crazed at the idea of having the Dark Mark on her arm and Potter certainly wasn't helping. He pitied her, without being contemptuous, for once.

He almost went sick at the idea of touching Potter. But he would have to. He knew what had happened, what the Death-Eaters wanted, and it just won't do to have Miss Granger out of their way and in Azkaban.

For the second time, he sunk his teeth in an armed wizard's hand to save Hermione Granger. He didn't like it a bit.

However, this time, Miss Granger wasn't so quick. She looked startled when Potter dropped his wand, and noticed him before Potter did.

"You're alive..." she gasped.

_I ought to have let Potter kill you, you insufferable know-it-all, _grumbled Severus as she picked him up.

"What the hell is that?" demanded Potter.

"He is..." _he would kill her if she mentioned "Severus Snape", _"my pet... my familiar..."

_Her pet!!!_

_Better than saying "Professor Snape's pet"_...

Her _pet!!!_

_You were going to kill her if she mentioned "Severus Snape"._

_Her pet!!!_

_She doesn't 'know' who you are._

That was a consolation of sorts.

"Hermione, you have got to come with me to the Ministry."

"But, Harry, I am NOT a Death-Eater."

"Yeah," said Potter sarcastically, "you just decided to have that creepy tattoo carved out on your arm for fun."

"Harry! I don't know how this has happened."

_I am going to die if you tighten your hold on me anymore, girl!_

"I am not that thick, Hermione. Either you are coming peacefully, or I am dragging you there."

The girl eased her hold on him and he jumped onto the sofa. He wondered if his white fur had turned blue. That girl had rendered him unable to breathe.

_Finally, the girl has got back her senses,_ thought Severus, for Hermione had pulled out her wand, and before Potter could move, had stunned him.

Taking in the scene before him, Severus started having second thoughts. Hadn't Miss Granger just confirmed Potter's and all other goody-two-shoes' suspicions?

Oh, well, bloody hell! They weren't going to believe her if she hadn't done that. Casting a last glance around him, Severus followed Miss Granger to her bedroom.

-

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: Sorry, it has taken too long to update. However, I have rewritten this chapter as the initial plot twisted into a new one.**

**So how do you like this one? **

**For anybody who is also reading _Never Say Goodbye_, please note that the first chapter has been reloaded! Thank-you!**

****


	4. Chapter 3

-x-o-x-

** CHAPTER 3**

** HERMIONE AND HER PET**

_ And in which humour gives way to adventure, suspense and some comical angst… (finally, the authoress has understood how angst and humour can go together)_

Hermione sat down in front of the fire-place, observing her arm. She had gone to her late grandparents' house in Galway, Ireland which had been lying useless for quite some time now.

_ How had this thing gotten here?_ The last time she had seen her arm was before putting on the sweater. And then it had been fine. So she had acquired this – most probably – during her stay in Leaky Cauldron. But the million-dollar-question right now, was of course, _how_?

She sighed and finally pulled down the sleeve. She wasn't going to get any answers by staring at her hand. Books would have been her immediate solution, but she doubted that there were any books here and she had not had the time to pack up her library.

They were probably going to put up wards and Aurors around her house.

How _very_ annoying!

She thought that she would contact Dumbledore. But she wasn't sure. What if he turned her in? Would he believe her? What would he do when he saw that Mark on her arm?

_ Most_ _probably_, _nothing_ _good_, she thought bitterly.

-x-o-x-

Professor Snape was another person who was on her mind. She wondered what had become of him. Lucius Malfoy would not have been there if he had already killed or captured Snape.

Or maybe he had just got to know that she was there and come for her.

_ Very_ _possible_, she thought with a frown.

As she turned in her seat, she realized that Professor Snape's squirrel was asleep beside her purse.

Smiling sadly, she gently gathered it in her arms and took it with her down to the bedroom.

-x-o-x-

He had not eaten anything for a few days now and therefore, he was getting exhausted and drowsy very soon. Hence, as soon as they reached wherever she had decided that they would go, he had fallen asleep.

All he hoped was that she would light that fire soon. It was getting cold in here.

When he woke up, it was pleasantly warm. He realized that he had never been so warm and comfortable in months. The Order work had made him forget every other thing including his comfort.

What surprised him more was that a warm hand was caressing his back.

_ Merlin! Granger!_

He turned slightly to see that she was absent-mindedly running her fingers up and down his back. He was cosily nestled in the warm blankets. She wasn't looking at him, though, but out of the window.

He followed her gaze. It was a pleasant view of the sea that met his eyes. He supposed that they were in some port town. The sea was calm, presently with no boats in sight.

Granger suddenly brought him closer to her bosom, much to his disconcertment. Now, in his human form, he won't have minded it at all – he would have resented it, but not disliked it. But being so small, it was literally suffocating.

But it was her words which surprised him.

"Professor Snape, where are you?"

Was she thinking about _him_? Why was she _crying_? What in Merlin's name was she imagining had happened to him?

"It's a pity you don't talk, squirrel," she said to him. "But since you have followed me here, I think you know that your master… Professor Snape… is no more. Oh God!"

_ She thinks I am dead because my "familiar" has left me. Only if she knew!_

"I liked him, you know," she said softly, more to herself than to him, "He was a good man."

_ Liked me? Good man?_

_ Well, grief does strange things to people's sanity._

"Okay, so maybe calling him good is over-doing it, but he was. Or I like to think so. He was a mean, sarcastic bastard, yeah, but he… cared… for things, you know. He cared that we win and Voldemort be defeated. He cared for Dumbledore and Minerva. And know what, in his own twisted way, I think he cared for me, too."

Severus wasn't thinking anymore. He was just listening. Probably, he was too stunned to think.

"I missed him and I miss him and will always miss him. I loved it when I was his apprentice. I loved the late-night chats. I loved it when I annoyed him. Hell, I even loved it when he annoyed me, I think."

She was smiling slightly now.

"He was so alive for those two years. He was no more a Grim to be feared. He was an annoying man whom I liked nonetheless. He was so intelligent. Just like someone right from Middle Ages. I cannot imagine the world without him. Oh God! I wish I had never left him."

All Severus thought – when he eventually got around to the thinking part – was that she was holding him too tight. If she didn't release her hold on him, he was going to die – literally.

-x-o-x-

He struggled out of her grip and lay panting on her stomach. Merlin! He had never known that women were so strong. Never again would he regard them as fragile creatures. Not particularly this brown-haired idiot.

To say that he was unaffected by her declarations would be a lie. He wasn't over-affected, however. He still considered her to be very annoying. Especially because of her curly rat's nest of hair which didn't allow him to snuggle in the pillows.

_ Oh, well, I guess I have slept enough anyway._

The squirrel got down from the bed and decided that it was meal-time. That is, if there was anything to eat in this old dusty house.

He remembered there were chocolates in her bag. He'd eat those for now.

_ Did she mean what I thought she meant?_

_ Don't be stupid. You know very well that all this has affected her brain._

_ She sounded almost sincere._

_ She had sounded sincere when she had called you an insensitive bastard and thrown a book at your head._

_ No, that was just a nightmare._

_ She sounded sincere enough in your nightmare._

_ Nightmares are not truth._

_ You've got it wrong there. Dreams don't come true – nightmares do. Look at Potter._

_ He doesn't have nightmares. All he has is hallucinations, the attention-seeking brat._

_ She'll wake up tomorrow and forget that she ever knew a man called Severus Snape. You are just a passing phase._

_ A passing phase._

_ Yes, that's right. You're as ugly as Krum and as foolish as Lockhart – you would have to be to fall for Granger and have her brain affected by yourself._

_ She isn't that bad._

_ She'd not even recognize you if you appeared in front of her in a few days._

_ And how exactly am I going to do that?_

_ Ah… the little predicament we are in… wonder how we forgot all about it. Ever doomed to nibble nuts…_

_ Granger, I hate you._

_ Fickle._

That was his chief problem anyway. While most curses wore off in a few days, obviously this Granger-fabrication was permanent. Intelligence was obviously overrated.

He imagined a situation when he would be so desperate that he would have to devise a way to tell Granger who he was. What would happen then? He would probably kill her – or kill himself. Because if Granger came to realize that it was him she was finding 'comfort' in and petting him… well, they'd both die of embarrassment. He was not really ashamed of being a squirrel though. A cute one at that, even if he said so himself.

-x-o-x-

-x-o-x-

_ I have to do something about all this_, thought Hermione, frowning at the Dark Mark on her arm.

But what?

She considered her options.

She didn't want to go to Dumbledore. He was very unpredictable. The last thing she wanted was being suspected even by her friends.

If Professor Snape would have been alive, she would have gone to him.

She shook her head. This was not the time to think about him. She knew that he'd only contempt her if she wallowed in pity and didn't do anything to get out of this predicament.

Maybe she could see some other Order member. Ron? No, if Harry didn't trust him, even Ron won't.

Ginny? While she was her best girl-friend, she wasn't sure about her. After all, she was seeing Harry.

Remus?

Well, that was an option. She knew that Remus won't turn her in without listening her out. Maybe he had come to know about her and the Dark Mark, but she was sure that he would listen to her. She remembered that night in Shrieking Shack all those years ago – how he had forgiven Sirius even though he had suspected him of murdering Mr. and Mrs. Potter thirteen years ago.

Hmmm… he was an option.

She racked her brains thinking if she could find anyone else.

-x-o-x-

"Are you eating chocolates, squirrel? That's so… odd."

Hermione knew that squirrels didn't eat chocolates – or did they? She settled on that they did not.

The white creature looked up at her but continued its sweet feast.

"Okay, so maybe you do," she said uncertainly. "I'll get you some milk if you are so hungry. And some nuts and berries. But chocolates… You are a weird creature, squirrel."

The white squirrel ignored her and continued eating.

"I suddenly remembered someone, you know," she said, talking to the small creature because she wanted to talk and obviously, she was her only option. "I wonder if Mrs. Snape would care to know about her son."

-x-o-x-

Severus choked on his chocolate.

_ Brilliant! For once in your lifetime, you are not being a complete idiot, Miss Granger. I am truly impressed._

_ Your mother is really not an option._

_ I would bear her wrath than nibble on chocolates._

_ She might kill you._

_ She might not._

"I met her once."

Severus just managed to avoid choking again.

"I never told Professor Snape because he would be so angry. I was in the Three Broomsticks. She had called me there to tell me that he might turn back to Voldemort."

Severus was listening very attentively. Granger didn't seem to notice that he had stopped eating.

"He hated her because she had never stood up for him. She said that he had mentioned me in passing when he had gone home. She might make pretence of hating him, but she really didn't. She was wary about him and cared for him in a way only Snapes can care. It was a pretty short meeting."

Severus was baffled by this discovery. His mother had belittled him so much for taking on a Muggleborn as his apprentice.

"I think it would be right to tell her about him. To apologize, maybe… Then we'll go and see Remus. I am sure he will listen."

Severus had more than sneaking suspicion that if they went to Snape Manor first, they would not be seeing Lupin for a long time afterwards.

-x-o-x-

Though she had never seen the Snape Manor, she knew its exact location. She had found it in one of the books she had borrowed from Professor Snape once. It gave a detailed account of the important persons of this century.

His father was in that book, she recalled. He had achieved some major breakthroughs in the field and Snape had followed his footsteps because everyone else in the family had been a scholar in Potions. Not that he regretted it, he had said.

Looking at the weather-beaten, yet mighty building before her, she felt gloomy. She looked at the squirrel who would not sit anywhere but on her handbag.

"I want to keep you, you know," she said, caressing him, "because I want something that belonged to him around me. But I guess that you'd rather be with the family?"

He merely looked at her for some seconds and then turned away.

"You're as good as Crookshanks was. You seem to really listen to everything I say."

She knocked with the old-fashioned knocker that was on the great doors. They opened of their own accord. It was spooky.

Inside, Mrs. Snape was standing near a painting, her back to Hermione.

Everything was quiet until she turned and said,

"I knew something was up between you two. But I never thought that you'd come here to take my blessings – not at least in that form, Severus."

Hermione turned around, eerily expecting Professor Snape to pop up behind her.

Meanwhile, the squirrel jumped down and went to Mrs. Snape.

-x-o-x-


	5. Chapter 4

-x-o-x-

** CHAPTER 4**

** HERMIONE AND HER POTIONS MASTER**

-x-o-x-

As far as she was concerned, it was horribly embarrassing. Excruciatingly humiliating. Honestly awkward. Disgustingly…

"Come in," she said as two sharp knocks interrupted her thoughts.

Mrs. Snape sailed in with her 'son' in her right arm. Hermione blushed some more as her eyes fell on 'Professor Snape'.

"I didn't know that you had studied basic Dark Arts," she said, putting down the white squirrel on the bed near Hermione, who flinched as she imagined the squirrel glaring at her. She was damn sure that the squirrel was glaring at her and if it could, it would yell like a banshee.

"I have not."

"You don't need to sound so scandalized. It is rather good to have a thirst for knowledge. Anyway, I am unable to turn him back into a human. Are you sure that there is no other way?"

Hermione shook her head. "The counter-spell to this Charm is not a spell but… a potion." She looked towards the squirrel ('It's still glaring at me'). "Professor Snape had been personally researching this idea when I became his apprentice." She pointedly looked away from where she knew the squirrel was still glaring at her.

"And the potion is in the Head Office of the Animagi Department."

"Ummm… well… I doubt Percy Weasley would let it out of his sight."

Mrs. Snape stared hard at her. What was with these Snapes and glaring?

"I won't want to be with you when he turns back."

And she left on that sour note.

Hermione sighed. Snapes.

-x-o-x-

The Dark Mark was glowing black. That was what was strange about it. If it was glowing black, then it should have been hurting – like mad. But it was not. Plus, she doubted even Voldemort had the patience to press it for so long that it would remain black twenty-four hours per day. Come to think of it, Voldemort wasn't an exceptionally patient man. In fact, his reserves for patience lasted for such a short time that she was sure that whatever was left of his patience must have suffocated in its reserve due to claustrophobia.

"What the hell am I thinking?"

Forcing the strange thoughts out of her head, Hermione put the silver bowl containing nuts-and-milk in front of 'Professor Snape'.

She was bloody damn sure that it was STILL glaring at her.

"I am sorry okay," she said, eyeing it warily. "I didn't mean to…" She waved her hand, shrugging.

The little thing looked down at his food and then up at her pointedly.

"What? You were eating chocolates before. This doesn't make a great difference, does it? Plus, I can't get you more chocolates. You ate ALL my chocolates. How can you be so heartless? What if I had died of hunger? Who'd have turned you back into a Professor again?"

It was glaring at her.

"Ummm… okay, so you aren't a Professor yet, but I am going to break into Percy's house tonight. So you…"

"WHAT WAS YOU DOING?"

Hermione turned abruptly as she heard the high-pitched yell.

A house-elf was looking at it with horror.

"WHY IS YOU TRYING TO POISON MASTER? MISTRESS SNAPE!"

"Poison?"

Hermione picked up the bowl and inspected it closely. There were no visible signs of poison… oh…

She flicked her wand over the bowl. Nothing.

"There's no…"

"Miss Granger."

"Mrs. Snape?"

"You… you Mudblood! How can you put that in front of MY son?"

Was the household throwing a fit because she had given him nuts and milk – milk and nuts (that was the correct way of putting it)?

"Your son, madam, is currently not in a position to enjoy… crab soup. I mean he doesn't even like crab soup."

"Whether he is in an Animagus form or not, he can fully enjoy a decent meal!" said Mrs. Snape sharply.

"Sure he can," said Hermione soothingly, "at least, that is what he must have told you. But then, you see, I did a very thorough research for my spell – and I know that it is best for a witch or wizard to feed on what the Animagus form eats while they are transformed. Otherwise it might lead to complications such as…"

"Shut up! You don't understand a pureblood…"

"The rule, the book said, stands true for all wizarding community, regardless of their parental lineage – and books are never wrong," interrupted Hermione coldly.

"And YOU do not INTERRUPT ME when I am TALKING," she hissed angrily.

Hermione was about to shoot a sarcastic reply, when all the anger vanished from her face – instead there was incredulity… and disgust.

'Professor Snape' was happily supping.

Hermione beamed at him. Good squirrel!

-x-o-x-

Hermione had started 'dressing' for breaking into Percy Weasley's house over three hours in advance. She had calculated correctly. It took exactly two hours fifteen minutes and eighteen seconds to put up her hair in a sleek bun at the nape of her neck. She didn't want to leave stray curls which they would lead straight to her.

Now came the tough part – dressing.

She was seated in front of the mirror. 'Professor Snape' had promptly fallen asleep after his meal. He had been asleep for over three hours now. When she had begun straightening her hair, she had just once glanced at him. Assured that he was asleep – and it was absurd to shy from fixing her hair in front of a sleeping squirrel – even if it was your former Potions Master you were sort of in love with.

But dressing – you know, taking off your dress, standing there in just your underwear and then putting on new clothes – was clearly out of equation.

What if he decided to finish his nap just when she was half-naked? As if she wasn't embarrassed enough already… confessing her love for him… petting him…

'Don't even go there.'

Bathroom it was, she thought. Then again, there was a teensy-weensy problem. She had no idea where the bathroom was. There wasn't one attached to her bedroom. And even if there was, well, her hostess had refrained from telling it to her. There was no way she was going to go and ask her about it right now. The woman looked ready to kill when she left her room three hours ago.

She'd have to wake him up and put him outside the room.

She got up and advanced towards the bed. She had even extended her hand towards the white furry creature.

What if he bit her?

She quickly pulled back her hand.

He won't bite her – and even if he did, she knew a lot of Healing Charms. No, there was no way she was going to lift her Potions Master…

'He's just a squirrel.'

_ 'Wasn't much of just-a-squirrel when he glared at me…'_

She reached out a trembling finger and gave a quick prod.

Merlin! The man – squirrel… was asleep like a log or hog. Whatever.

She'd change super fast. He had been asleep for so long – she was sure that he would remain so for five more minutes.

In any case, there was no way in smoking hell that she was going to pick him up and deposit him outside the door of her room.

-x-o-x-

Severus had been to a couple of bachelor's parties when he was in college. Since those had been mostly attended by Death-Eaters, one would assume that there would be a lot of bloodshed and sadomasochism. Surprisingly, it was not so. They were rather… Muggle in their nature. He wasn't about to explain to anyone as to how he came to know about the nature of Muggle bachelor's parties.

There had always been stripteases. That was his favourite part. There was something extremely erotic about watching a woman undress in a rhythm.

He didn't know that it was an equal turn on without the beats and beer and buxom blondes.

Although it was rather… strange to be a squirrel and to be turned on by a human. Were squirrels turned on by humans? Right. He wasn't even going to spare it a nanosecond.

_ Wow._

_ At least we'll have no qualms about her being an ex-student and all that jazz._

_ She's got a cute ass._

_ You're drooling. You don't want to embarrass yourself more now – what would Granger think if she found a squirrel drooling over her?_

_ And her breasts – when did she grow up? Don't put that on! You're better off without it, Granger._

_ Am I really such a big pervert?_

_ Loving her won't be a big problem – I hope we hop in bed soon after, though. I can't wait to run my hands down those creamy thighs._

_ I wasn't such a big pervert until I developed double personality._

_ That is what denial does to you. Damn Granger, you're hot._

_ And I am seriously depraved. Knockturn Alley is going to be my first stop after I am back._

He tightly closed his eyes as soon as she finished buttoning her overcoat and turned around. She had probably thought that he was asleep. Good. Let her maintain that impression. He could do without the embarrassment.

He noted the absence of her usual perfume as she sat down next to him – and proceeded to jab a finger at him. Odious girl!

"Professor."

When he opened his eyes, she said, "I thought you might want to accompany me. You've got me out of some truly sticky corners."

He hopped on to her outstretched hand as an agreement.

-x-o-x-

She had put on Muggle clothes – a full-sleeves black shirt and black jeans. Of course she was going to use Concealment Charms and a lot of other spells, but the occasion just called for a black attire.

"What's this?"

Mrs. Snape was regarding her with a critical look.

"What do you mean, madam?"

"What's this you are wearing? I thought you were going to that Weasley's!"

"That is exactly why I am wearing this."

"Where are your robes?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Let's be practical here. I am going to STEAL a vial from the most edgy man in the Ministry. Why would I want to wear a robe of all things? Do you know how easy it is for a robe to hook on to most unsuspecting things and drop them just when you don't want it to happen?"

Mrs. Snape looked extremely contemptuous.

"Where is Severus?"

Hermione put her hand inside her enlarged overcoat pocket and brought out the white squirrel.

Mrs. Snape was horrified. "You can't take him around in that cavalier fashion! He's MY…"

"Son," interrupted Hermione. "But I seriously don't care. He's alright there. He'd have gotten out of there if he wasn't. And I am not wasting any more time here."

-x-o-x-

Percy Weasley resided in a Ministry financed house in one of the exclusively magical residential areas of London. Hermione had been to his place a couple of times during the course of her project, hence, there was absolutely no difficulty in locating his house.

She, too, lived in a Ministry house, hence, she was aware of the protection charms they had. As for the personal touch he might have added to them…

It wasn't too difficult. Harry was an Auror and of course, she had read all _his _books, too.

In fact, it was really rather simple to get inside the house. The tough part was to search for a small vial filled with a plum potion.

'Let's think… if I were Percy Weasley, where would I put something important?'

She headed towards his bedroom but stopped abruptly as she reached the door.

She didn't even want to think about it. If she had doubted before if an-elephant-has-stuck-up-my-ass Percy Weasley had a sex life… well, she was paying for it now, wasn't she?

-x-o-x-

She had retreated to the sitting-room and cast some STRONG Silencing Charms.

"My ears! My brain! Poor me!"

The squirrel had gotten out of her pocket and was currently beside her.

It wasn't glaring at her, though. Even Snape won't want to walk in on Percy Weasley shagging a man. Yep, that was what had unsettled her THAT much. She was sure that it was a man who had called his name. What was even more unsettling was that she was slowing beginning to realize why that voice sounded so familiar. She just wasn't going to admit it. No, no way. She won't admit it until… until someone forced Veritaserum down her throat.

Had Snape realized who the other man was? Maybe that was why he seemed so green… no, that was just the green night-lamp in the room.

-x-o-x-

Over an hour had passed. Hermione was dozing off when she felt something pricking her hand.

Professor Snape.

He removed his paw as she sat up and looked at him.

Right. Time for some action.

Ack! Mental images!

Removing the Silencing Spells, she ventured towards Percy's bedroom once again. All seemed quiet now. THANK MERLIN!

Opening the door just enough to slip in, she first peeped inside.

At least they had had the decency to throw the covers on their body before dropping off to sleep.

Unlike the sitting-room, the bedroom had a blue night-lamp which served her purpose just as well. She had declined Mrs. Snape's offer of the Hand of Glory as she knew that the arrangement of the bedroom won't be essentially different from her own. The bracket for the night-lamp was just above the bureau and side-table – where she suspected the vial to be.

Her senses were alert to every sound and movement now. Percy was snoring lightly. Someone was listening to radio next door. A door banged afar. If she concentrated really hard, she could even hear the sound of Muggle traffic which would be moving unaware of the colony of wizards and witches. She felt the squirrel move in her pocket.

By some stretch of imagination she even heard her heart beat wildly.

She stared for some time at the black head just visible from under the covers. She knew it well. It had broken her heart when he had admitted that he thought he was gay… that he had thought so for some time. It hurt to know that he had been secretly – deep down somewhere – been admiring Cedric Diggory when she thought that she was the sole person to have caught his attention. Boys. Men.

But he had found happiness, it seemed. Strangely, with Percy Weasley.

She started as she felt him move. He turned over so that she was now staring right at his face.

Blinking hard, she turned to the task at hand.

Meticulously, she went through the drawers in the bureau and the side-table. She had put on gloves. The Muggle way was better, in her opinion. Magic could be traced.

Eventually, she found the vial in Percy's briefcase. Rather anticlimactic, but then Percy was really rather predictable. She had known which charms he'd have used for extra-protection. She had known that it would be somewhere in his bedroom. She had known that he would place some charms around the bottle which she would remove before touching it.

All in all, there was no need for her heart to beat so fast that for one wild moment she thought it would burst and reveal her presence there.

When she stood up straight, the bottle in her pocket, she was startled to find herself staring in Viktor's eyes.

Quickly getting over the initial shock, she reasoned that she was still cloaked with Concealment Charms and there would be no way he was seeing her. He had just woken up. Plus, won't he be screaming and hexing if he found a supposedly Death-Eater in the bedroom?

Viktor seemed to have better senses of magic though. He seemed sure that there was someone about.

"Percy," he said quietly, shaking the redhead out of his sleep.

"Tired… sleep…"

"Someone's broken through the wards, Perce."

Percy looked up at him blearily. "What?"

"The wards – they've been broken. I think someone has broken into the house."

-x-o-x-

** AUTHOR'S NOTE:** I might reveal a "secret hobby" of Severus Snape in later chapters. There are some clues to it in this chapter. Can you guess the hobby? Note that it isn't a very Muggle hobby. It is something only a wizard could do! In fact, I haven't seen that hobby in any other story and I rather pride myself on thinking it up. Can you think it up?

-x-o-x-


End file.
